1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to telecommunications equipment housings, and more particularly, to a housing for containing fiber optic connections that is adapted to be mounted in a corner between two walls.
2. Description of the Related Art
Fiber optic cables are used for transmitting voice, data and video communications. In a typical installation, a provider cable will extend to a connector in a housing mounted to a wall at the user""s facility. The provider cable usually includes a bundle of individual optical fibers, each fiber transmitting optical signals. The provider cable passes through a provider port in the housing and connectors on the ends of the fibers connect to adapters on a connector panel. The connector panel has a plurality of apertures, one for each connector/adapter pair. A customer cable including one or more optical fibers is routed from various equipment in the customer""s facility to the housing through a customer port and optically connects with the optical fibers of the provider cable at the connector panel.
Many different types of wall mounted housings exist. These are commonly designed as rectangular boxes having provider cable connections on one side and customer cable connections on the other side, which protrude from the mounting wall a minimal distance to render them unobtrusive and to occupy minimal space. Such housings are often mounted in the vicinity of the customer""s equipment below the work area so that only a short customer cable is required to connect the equipment to the housing. In this manner, both the housing and the customer cable remain out of sight beneath the work area.
Although conventional housings are suitable for mounting against a wall in this manner, it is often desirable to mount a housing in a corner between two walls. Accordingly, a provider cable can be routed vertically along the corner and into the housing from above or below. Also, customer cables can be conveniently routed from the housing along both walls to different customer equipment located adjacent the walls. When conventional housings are mounted in a corner, they tend to occupy more wall space on one side of the corner than on the other, due to their rectangular design. This asymmetry can lead to problems when trying to arrange furniture adjacent the corner. For example, a desk may have to be displaced from the corner by as much as the depth or the width of the housing if it is to be positioned flush against one of the walls. In addition, if the customer cable emerges from the housing in the same plane that the provider cable enters the housing, the customer cable may have to be routed around a ninety degree (90xc2x0) corner immediately after emerging from the housing, leading to possible transmission losses due to bending. Furthermore, when mounted in a corner between two walls, the housing is less likely to be unintentionally struck and damaged by the user, the desk, or the customer equipment than when mounted in directly under a desk on a wall.
According to the present invention, a corner wall-mount fiber optic connector housing includes an enclosure having a back plate for mounting against a wall. At least one provider port is provided in the enclosure for the entry of a fiber optic provider cable having a plurality of optical fibers. At least two customer ports are provided in the enclosure for the entry of fiber optic customer cables having a plurality of optical fibers. At least two fiber optic connector panel mounts are positioned within the enclosure, each having an opening for receiving optical connectors to optically interconnect the fibers of the provider cable with the fibers of the customer cables.
The back plate is formed in two planes positioned at an angle to each other for mounting the housing in a corner between two walls. One of the customer ports and one of the connector panels is mounted adjacent each of the two planes of the back plate. Mounting the connector panels adjacent the two planes of the back plate permits the housing to be made symmetrical about the apex of the back plate. The preferred design enables the depth and the width of the enclosure to be minimized in both planes of the back plate, thereby ensuring that the housing may be mounted snugly in a corner between two walls while occupying a minimal amount of space on either wall. Furthermore, the provision of at least one customer port and one connector panel adjacent each plane of the back plate, and hence adjacent the walls forming the corner in which the housing is mounted, enables a customer cable to be routed directly from the housing parallel to the wall along which it is routed, thereby removing at least one bend from the customer cable.
Preferably, the two planes of the back plate are angled approximately ninety degrees (90xc2x0) apart. In this manner, the housing is optimised for corner installations between standard right angle walls. The connector panels preferably divide the enclosure into at least one provider compartment on the provider cable side of the connector panels and at least one customer compartment on the customer cable side of the connector panels. The at least one provider port permits entry/exit of the provider cable into the at least one provider compartment, and the at least two customer ports permit entry/exit of the customer cable into the at least one customer compartment. In this manner, the provider cable and its optical fibers and optical connectors may be kept separate from the customer cable and its optical fibers and connectors, thereby ensuring orderly management of the optical fibers and connectors on the respective sides of the connector panels.
The enclosure further includes top and bottom walls and a front panel having a first door to permit access to the at least one customer compartment. Preferably, the connector panels are in juxtaposition with and substantially orthogonal to the back plate and the top and bottom walls to form the at least two customer compartments. At least two customer ports are located on the top and bottom walls for routing a customer cable into the customer compartments. Customer compartments are thus located at either side of the provider compartment. In this way, two customer compartments and customer ports are located adjacent respective walls when mounted in a corner, thereby enabling separate customer cables to be conveniently connected to opposite sides of the housing. This arrangement may be particularly advantageous for simultaneously connecting customer equipment located along each of the two walls.
Advantageously, the front panel further includes a second door to permit access to the at least one provider compartment. In this manner, the customer compartments can be accessed while the provider compartment remains closed, thereby reducing the risk of confusion between the customer cable connections and the provider cable connections. Preferably, the second door is fitted with a lock to prevent unauthorized access to the provider compartment. Thus, the provider is afforded the security of knowing that the customer cannot gain access to the provider compartment, while at the same time, the customer remains able to access the customer compartments to reconfigure the optical connections as desired.